Sansevero Chapel tickets, hours and how to see the Veiled Christ

Why the Sansevero Chapel is worth the trip

From outside it looks like nothing much: a doorway on a narrow street behind Piazza San Domenico Maggiore. Inside is one of the most concentrated Baroque interiors in Europe. The chapel was founded in 1590 as the di Sangro family chapel, dedicated to Santa Maria della Pietà (locals still call it the “Pietatella”). What you see today is the work of Raimondo di Sangro, seventh Prince of Sansevero, who turned it in the 18th century into a programme of statues and symbols meant to be read like a book.

It is a small museum: one nave, a sacristy and an underground chamber. You do not need half a day, but you do need a booking. It also pays to arrive knowing what to look for, because every statue says something about the family and the prince’s ideas.

What you see: from the Veiled Christ to the anatomical machines

The visit follows the nave to the altar, then goes down to the underground chamber. These are the works to stop for.

The Veiled Christ

Carved by Giuseppe Sanmartino in 1753 from a single block of marble, shroud and all. The commission first went to Antonio Corradini, who died leaving only a terracotta model (now in the San Martino museum). The story that a real cloth was turned to marble by alchemy is just that, a story: every fold is carved. Canova is said to have claimed he would give ten years of his life to have made it. Look closely at the folds of the veil over the face.

Modesty and Disillusion

The nave also holds the memorials to Raimondo’s parents. Modesty (Pudicizia) by Antonio Corradini (1752), for his mother, is a fully veiled female figure. Disillusion (Disinganno) by Francesco Queirolo (1753–54), for his father, shows a man freeing himself from a net, also carved in marble.

The anatomical machines

In the underground chamber are two skeletons, a man and a woman, with their circulatory systems reconstructed. They were made in the second half of the 18th century by the Palermo physician Giuseppe Salerno for Raimondo di Sangro. Studies have shown the “vessels” are beeswax, iron wire and silk rather than real veins. The macabre fascination survives the explanation.

Ceiling, floor and other statues

Look up at the vault: the Glory of Paradise is a fresco by Francesco Maria Russo (1749). Only part survives of the original black-and-white labyrinth floor, often read as a Masonic symbol. Along the walls are the Virtues (Sincerity, Religious Zeal, Liberality, Decorum, Divine Love and others), the monument to Cecco di Sangro and the statues of the princes of Sansevero.

Sansevero Chapel ticket prices and discounts

The official price list is short, with no combined passes:

• Full price: €12 list price, €15 online
• Ages 18–26 (26 inclusive): €8
• FAI members, Friends of Naples members, police and armed forces: €8
• Ages 10–17 (17 inclusive): €6
• Disabled visitor + companion: €7 for both
• Children up to 9: free
• Schools (weekdays only): €4 per pupil, one teacher free per 10 pupils
• Audio guide: €3.50 single, €6 for two

Booking online on the official shop is compulsory and adds booking costs: the €12 full ticket comes to €15 there. The Campania Artecard gives no discount, and the free first Sunday at state museums does not apply, because the chapel is privately owned. The museum also runs Italian-language guided tours with its own staff on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and some special dates; price and availability are on the official ticket shop.

How booking works: time slots, lateness and refunds

Sansevero is stricter than almost any other museum in Naples, so read this part carefully.

1. Every visit must be booked. Online tickets go on sale 60 days ahead, and more are released 2 days before each date. If everything is sold out, try again then.
2. Entry times run every 30 minutes from 9:00. Your ticket is valid up to 10 minutes after the printed time; after that you may be turned away.
3. No changes, no refunds. A ticket is valid only for the date you chose, and the online fee is not returned either.
4. No phone or email bookings. At the ticket office, if there is space, parties of up to 9 can buy for dates up to 7 days ahead.
5. Maximum 9 tickets per purchase. Groups of 10 to 30 book online up to 2 days before, through the group procedure.

At the door you show your ticket (your phone is fine) and walk straight in, with no need to queue at the desk. Opening hours: daily 9:00–19:00, closed Tuesday, last entry half an hour before closing. Around some holidays the museum also opens on Tuesdays or stays open until 20:30; it is closed on 25 December and closes at 14:00 on 24 and 31 December. Check the official calendar before you fix a date.

Rules inside: no photos, no phones

The museum bans photos and video inside “for reasons of decorum and respect for other visitors”, and it bans using your mobile phone too. Anyone hoping to photograph the Veiled Christ will be disappointed. No touching the works, no animals, no food or drink.

The official site says nothing specific about bags, so travel light: the spaces are tight and often busy. On accessibility, the nave and the sacristy with the bookshop can be reached by wheelchair; the underground chamber cannot. The audio guide comes in Italian (including a version for blind visitors), English, Spanish, French and German, and there is a children’s version for ages 6 to 12, voiced by “Gennarino”.

How to get to the Sansevero Chapel

The address is Via Francesco De Sanctis 19/21, behind Piazza San Domenico Maggiore and a few steps from Spaccanapoli. You are already in the old town, among the Decumani.

• Metro Line 1: Università or Dante.
• Metro Line 2: Cavour.
• Buses: 151, 154, R2, 202; tram 41; the Alibus from the port (Molo Angioino/Beverello).

From any of these, allow a 5–10 minute walk. The last stretch is on cobbled pedestrian lanes, so comfortable shoes help. Santa Chiara is about 5 minutes away, and Via dei Tribunali with San Lorenzo Maggiore and Napoli Sotterranea is just uphill.

Official site, Tiqets or GetYourGuide?

The official ticket (€15 online, list price €12) is the simplest way in, and for a self-guided visit it is what we recommend. The partner options make sense in two situations.

• You want a guide. Entry with a guided tour starts at €16.65 on Tiqets and €15 on GetYourGuide: the same as the official online ticket or a little more, with someone to explain the symbols and the history. The Tiqets tour is rated around 4.7–4.8 from about 400 reviews.
• The official site is sold out. Partners sometimes still have availability when the museum’s own site is sold out. That is also the only case for the €25.18 entry with audio guide, which otherwise costs far more than the official €18.50.

Two things to keep in mind. The museum allows no more than 9 people per guide, so groups are small by rule. And refund terms depend on the option you choose on the partner site, so read them before paying. We are an independent guide: if you book through the Tiqets or GetYourGuide links on this page we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.

When to go and what to pair with the Sansevero Chapel

The main trick is to book early: as soon as sales open 60 days ahead if you are travelling over a holiday or in summer, otherwise a few weeks before. If you have a free day to choose, skip Tuesday (closed) and bear in mind that many visitors go at the weekend.

The Sansevero Chapel fits neatly into a walk through the old town. A half-day example: the Santa Chiara majolica cloister in the morning, then Sansevero, then up to Via dei Tribunali for San Lorenzo Maggiore or Napoli Sotterranea. If 18th-century Naples is your thing, the Treasure of San Gennaro is 10 minutes away. For every other ticketed sight, see our Naples tickets overview.